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Etz Chayim Israel Trip Reunion Album - June 2020

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  • Kathy Koritzinsky - This is the photo we picked. It shows one of our highlights. It was in Tel Aviv the night we all celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary June 8, 2019. It was a joy to celebrate with the wonderful group of Etzniks! And we received, as a gift, the beautiful book on Israel.

  • Randi Brenowitz - This was taken at Kabbalat Shabbat in Jerusalem. It was the first time I danced since my hip surgery 18 months before our trip.

  • Ted Schachter - This is a picture from the Rabin Memorial in Tel Aviv which was unexpected and shows different parts of the diversity of the Israel story. On this trip I really appreciated the time we spent in Tel Aviv because it represents the first modern Jewish city. In the "Tel Aviv Prayer" by Eli Mohar "God - here we have no wall, only sea. But You are everywhere. So surely here too."

  • Sheri Morrison - Lunch in the Druze village Buq'ata hosted by restaurateur Naseeba Samara. The food was delicious! And I was so inspired by how she basically single-handedly changed the culture of her village and brought women's rights to the fore.

  • David Findley -We passed by this underground synagogue on our tour of the “Temple Tunnels.” Although we did not stop, I was struck by the golden cast of the setting. It was “Jerusalem of Gold.”

  • Naomi Burns - This photo was taken from the rooftops in the old city. This was my first time seeing the Dome of the Rock, from this perspective.

  • Brian Burns - This was just before the lunch we had in the Druze village hosted by Naseba Keesh Smara. It's not a great photo, but it reminded me of what was great about our trip: compelling personal stories and great food (all rolled into one in this case!)etting Ready for Lunch at the Druze Village

  • Solange Tajchan - This is Avital Geva who we were fortunate to meet when we visited Kibbutz Ein Shemer. Avital was one of the paratroopers pictured at the Western Wall after East Jerusalem was reclaimed by Israel during the 1967 War. He was trained as an artist and worked on art installations at the intersection of art and kibbutz life. He built the greenhouse at Ein Shemer in 1976. The Greenhouse has become a non-profit organization that brings together Jewish Israeli and Arab youth, promoting partnership and scientific research into technology, alternative energy source and zooplankton, etc...

  • Sarah Schachter - Meeting and hearing the stories of these amazing Israeli and Palestinian teenagers ( Jewish, Muslim and Christian) brought tears to my eyes and brought me hope that perhaps this is the generation that will finally bring peace. They were so open with their experiences and how they have become friends by getting to know each other, and what they have risked by being a part of this organization.

  • Judith Sharon - I took this picture in the Hall of Ages on our tour of the Western Wall tunnels. The moment was a very moving one for me. As I looked at the excavation down through the ages, I felt powerfully connected deeply to my heritage, my birthright, my ancestors and our religion. It was a profound experience!

  • Alice Zelkha - Sweet Memories

  • Jonathan Salzado - I actually did very little photography on the trip. But I think this one is good - a view from the hotel in Jerusalem.

  • Marion Rubinstein - Rayden with a new friend at Kibbutz Ein Shemer

  • Ellen Stromberg - I chose this photo of our visit with two representatives of Combatants for Peace. It’s a hard and personally painful but important story for me to hear. Is one of the reasons I came on the trip, to be a witness of Osama and Moran’s

  • Rabbi Koritzinsky - I was struck by the unintentional framing of the site for "Rawabi extreme" (a place for rock climbing and other extreme sports) by the Emergency Exit sticker on the bus window. What helps one get out of an emergency "matzav" (situation)? Keeping to common, everyday actions and routines or does one need to take more "extreme" measures?

  • Mitch Slomiak - This was a sculpture, made from battlefield detritus, at Mt. Bental in the Golan Heights, the site of several battles that were won and lost at great cost. I, Mitch, was deeply moved during our time on this mountain as I contemplated the sacrifice and suffering of the variety of individuals who battled at this site. I wound up writing a poem called “Golan Impressions Where My Guitar Gently Weeps” about this sculpture and the experience.

  • Gail Slocum - Amidst all the complexities and mixed emotions, I chose to pick up this marker from the ground and replace it to its prominent position overlooking the Golan and Syria as well as Israel, etc. The sentiment calling for peace is repeated in English, Arabic, and Hebrew. The Arab students that were visiting this site were able to read it and be inspired.

  • Barbara Marcum - We all felt pain after hearing the injustices that Rabbi Lila was having to go through, but I came away from our time with her feeling passionate and positive about wanting to help her. We’ve all worked together and though it hasn’t come to fruition yet, it will and it’s already made a positive impact on her.

  • Etz Chayim Israel Trip June 2019

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